People with epilepsy 'more likely to die early'

21/07/2013

People with epilepsy are significantly more likely to die early than members of the general population, a study has found.

Researchers at Oxford University and the Karolinska Institute in Sweden studied 69,995 people with epilepsy and a further 600,869 people without the condition, all of whom were born between 1954 and 2009 and followed for up to 41 years.

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

The researchers found that people with epilepsy were approximately ten times more likely to die before reaching their mid-50s than the general population.

Further analysis revealed that many of these untimely deaths occurred in epilepsy patients with a psychiatric diagnosis, with a large proportion of deaths that were not directly linked to epilepsy involving suicide or accidents.

Study author Dr Seena Fazel, from Oxford University, said: 'This is the largest report to date to look at psychiatric associations in epilepsy and their contribution to premature mortality.'

She added that epilepsy patients with a diagnosis of mental illness seem to be a 'high-risk population' and may benefit from targeted preventative strategies and more intensive treatment.

NetDoctor, part of the Hearst UK wellbeing network
Netdoctor participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites.